Top Cat Begins Review

There are two film genres I have a lot of trouble sitting through. One of them is soppy romance films, and the other is low-quality, second-rate animated films. This, unfortunately, is one of those. Writing for a film website, I’m occasionally exposed to movies I wouldn’t normally go to see out of choice. Sometimes, this is a good thing. I see a lot more foreign films than I used to and get plenty of nice surprises. The other side of that is this – watching Top Cat Begins, alone. On top of that, I have no attachment to these characters from my childhood, so I had literally no reason to be excited. Here we go…

Just how did Top Cat and the rest of his gang begin? Is a question this film presumed you were asking. Starting out alone on the streets of New York, Top Cat is a simple conman (what are we teaching our children?), just looking to get as much money as possible, whilst putting in as little effort as he can (seriously). Along the way, he meets a few more cats that he tricks into doing work for him, as we discover the story of how Top Cat and the gang got their start.

So, I’ll get the simple things out-of-the-way first. The animation on show here is quite poor. It’s obvious to anybody that’s seen any footage from this film, although there hasn’t been much marketing, almost like it wasn’t expected to be a hit. The story is also helplessly thin, with plot holes the size of Top Cat’s ego. But a few minutes into this film, something strange started to happen.

I laughed. It didn’t happen often, but I actually laughed at some of the jokes. Of course, there are a lot more misses than there are hits, but I can’t deny that a few moments got me. That being said, this film does have a terrible message – trick people into liking you, and never work for your money. It also features multiple scenes where male characters dress in women’s clothes for laughs and antiquated joke which by now shouldn’t really exist.

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The Verdict

2

Total score

Top Cat Begins is not the worst children's film you'll ever see, but it's also nowhere near the best. It's not well made, it does nothing new, and despite a few genuinely funny moments, it feels like it doesn't belong on the big screen.

'Why would I not watch this?' The words Todd James said shortly before watching Pudsey the Dog: The Movie. Todd is a lover of all films, except bad ones, and spends more time in a dark room watching them than somebody so pale should.